Shawn Langdon will be going more than 200 mph faster this weekend than the last time he visited Bandimere Speedway.
Langdon, a rookie in the NHRA’s top fuel class, hasn’t competed at “Thunder Mountain” since 1997, when he captured the junior dragster age 14 national championship.
Now 26 and preparing for his first Mopar Mile-High Nationals, Langdon is one of top fuel’s top rookies. He has qualified for all 12 races and advanced to the semifinals five times. He’s 13-12 in eliminations and seventh in the point standings.
“Here’s this 14-year-old kid from Southern California racing all the best juniors in the country, and I end up winning the title,” Langdon said of his first trip to Bandimere. “If I hadn’t already been hooked on the sport, that weekend would have done it for me. It was special, and I remember it like it was yesterday.”
Langdon went on to win NHRA super comp championships in 2007 and 2008 before getting his chance to run with the big boys. He drives the Lucas Oil/Dixie Choppers dragster for Forrest Lucas, still looking for win No. 1.
“Our car’s been running good all year,” Langdon said. “We’re just waiting for things to fall our way. . . . Our time will come. There’s no doubt about that.”
“Fast” Jack coming back.
Funny car driver Jack Beckman, who won the circuit’s previous race June 28 in Ohio, holds a 7-1 career eliminations record at Bandimere. He was the quarter-mile champion in 2007 at the Mile-Highs and runner-up a year ago in the inaugural 1,000-foot nitro races.
“This represents a full circle,” Beckman said. “We’re coming back to the track where we ran the first 1,000-foot race in 2008. All I want to do is go one round better than last year. I’m 7-1 in Denver in a pro car!”
Mr. Consistency finds victory.
Eddie Krawiec won last year’s pro stock motorcycle world title without winning a race, becoming to first NHRA competitor to do that since top fuel’s Rob Bruins in 1979.
Krawiec is doubling his fun this year, entering Bandimere atop the pro bike’s standings with two victories and five final-round appearances in seven races.
“The way it turned out last year, I was ecstatic, I wouldn’t change a thing,” Krawiec said. “It was etched into the history books. (This year,) to go out there and capture wins — I’ve been in five straight final rounds — is awesome. . . . I’m just riding the bike with confidence.
Mike Chambers, The Denver Post
